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Mark Engler

Is social media strengthening our communities, or is it actually harming our ability to connect in person? Students discuss two readings about the pros and cons of social media engagement, including some research on this question.

Two high-profile proposals to tax the rich are gaining attention and popular support. This activity has students explore these proposals, the historical precedent for them, and their possible benefits and pitfalls.

Less than half of eligible voters typically vote in national elections in the U.S.. The House of Representatives has passed a bill to encourage voter participation by making Election Day a national holiday. This activity explores the arguments for and against this and other proposals for making it easier for people to vote.

Several billionaires are thinking of running for president - and one is already in office. Is this good for democracy? In this activity, students learn about and discuss the debate over billionaire presidential candidates - and the impact of the growing wealth gap between elected leaders and the rest of us.

In February 2019, community organizations declared victory when Amazon withdrew its plans to open a second headquarters in Queens, New York. Students explore what happened and the arguments for and against the Amazon deal that went down.

The economy is growing. Why aren’t people feeling it? This lesson has students examine whether the way economists measure the health of the economy actually reflects the reality Americans experience. Students explore alternative measures that some countries and states have begun to adopt aimed at better capturing the real conditions of everyday people.

Are Amazon, Google, and other companies monopolies? Should we use antitrust legislation rein them in? Students read about and discuss the roots of anti-trust laws and whether they should be applied today.

Does the U.S. political system live up to the principle of one person, one vote? In this lesson, students explore arguments about whether the Electoral College and the U.S. Senate might hinder the quest for fair, democratic representation.

Young people are suing the U.S. government over climate change, and their case comes before federal court on October 29, 2018. In this lesson, students examine the suit, read the personal testimony of two of the plaintiffs, and consider other strategies that young people are using to affect climate policy.

2018 is the 50th anniversary of a landmark protest at the Miss America beauty pageant. The protest was part of a new period of feminist activism—one with renewed significance in the #MeToo era. In this lesson, students learn the details of the protest using an original document and explore how the protest affected the women's liberation movement and our lives since the decades since.

The United States is suffering from a crisis of affordable housing. This lesson consists of two student readings on this issue. The first examines the arguments for and against Yimby-style development. The second looks at solutions that go beyond market-focused fixes, considering alternative ways to ensure that all people have access to affordable housing.

This lesson introduces students to the controversy over Justice Kennedy’s retirement and Trump’s role in reshaping the Supreme Court. The first reading reviews Kennedy’s career and highlights the significance of his role as a swing vote on the court. The second reading examines possible consequences of a Kavanaugh appointment and examines how a variety of groups are resisting Kavanaugh’s confirmation.

Protests across the country reflect widespread outrage over the Trump administration’s “zero tolerance” immigration policies. In this lesson, students learn about the controversy over the administration's policies to separate and/or detain families who are seeking to immigrate to the U.S.

This lesson uses the example of a bidding war by cities to become Amazon's second headquarters to explore the question of providing public subsidies to private companies. Students also learn about and discuss ways cities can ensure that companies like Amazon hold up their end of the bargain through strategies such as "clawback" rules and "tracking" for public subsidies.

In the wake of the Parkland school shooting, many have called for increased "school security" measures. In this lesson, students consider whether such measures make schools safer and discuss their impact on young people and the school climate.

Fifty years after Martin Luther King's Poor People's Campaign, a coalition of multiracial groups has announced that it is launching a new Poor People’s Campaign aimed at addressing divisions in the United States, from racism to economic and gender inequality. In the this lesson, students learn about the original Poor People’s Campaign and the new one, and discuss how the two drives are similar and different.

President Trump has announced that his administration will dramatically reduce the size of two national monuments in Utah. Through readings and discussion, students consider this move and wider questions about how public lands in the United States should be used.

The U.S. has more people detained while awaiting trial than any other country in the world. In this lesson, students explore the issue of cash bail, why some criminal justice reform advocates argue for ending it, and what has happened in cities and states that have ended cash bail.

The Republicans have introduced one of the largest tax overhaul plans in many years. In this lesson, students consider what taxes do and why Americans pay them; and examine the Republicans' proposed tax reform and how analysts are projecting it will affect the country.

Threats by Donald Trump and by North Korea have stoked worries about nuclear war. In this lesson, students learn about the work of International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, and about past social movement campaigns that have worked to avert war and promote nuclear disarmament.

Critics charge that the real goal of a new federal commission to investigate voter fraud is to justify efforts to make it more difficult for people of color to vote. Students learn about and discuss the controversy.

When President Trump announced that the U.S. would be pulling out of the Paris climate agreement, governors and mayors across the country announced that they were still on board and would continue their efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. In this activity, students read about and discuss how cities and states are leading by example when it comes to climate change.

Michelle Alexander’s book The New Jim Crow changed the conversation about race, racism, and incarceration in this country. In this activity, students explore Alexander’s argument that our criminal justice system has relegated millions of people of color to a permanent second–class status, and examine how people are challenging the policies mass incarceration and the New Jim Crow.

President Trump has proposed eliminating federal funding for public media and the arts. What do students think? In this activity, students learn about the debate, discuss it, and research one program they think either should or should not be funded.

Democracy doesn't begin and end in the voting booth. In readings and discussion, students explore tactics people are using to pressure their elected officials, including the Tea Party on the right and Indivisible groups on the left.

With Republicans gaining control of all three branches of the federal government, unions are under increasing attack. For students, this raises some pertinent questions: What are unions? Why are they important? And how will the attack on unions affect working people in our country?